This guide is designed to help you understand the principals of training for weight loss. Every day I see overweight people grinding away on the cardio machines, and week after week goes by with them looking the same as ever, if not fatter. This guide will help you understand the principles of weight loss, educate you on how to train to help speed up your weight loss goals, and also guide you on how to structure a 12 week transformation plan by yourself.

CARDIO AND FAT LOSS

Cardio will definitely help aid in your fat loss but mark my words when I say that it’s not going to be the most essential part of your weight loss program! You need to understand that getting on an elliptical machine or stationary bike does not turn on an imaginary fat loss switch. Cardio does help to burn calories and it does help boost your basal metabolic rate (BMR) to an certain extent but if your weight loss plan only consists of cardio, you are going to hit a plateau quicker thank you think!

TYPES OF CARDIO

STEADY-STATE CARDIO (SSC)

This type of training involves intensities which elicit 40 to 60 percent of Maximum Heart Rate (MHR). It is basically something slow, easy, continuous and long (roughly 40-60 minutes). This can be walking, cycling, jogging, swimming etc.

This type of training is good for people who are just getting started with cardio work. I mostly suggest this type of cardio for obese or very unfit clients. It’s reasonably good for fat loss if a correct weight training and nutrition plan is followed along with it.

BEST TIME TO DO THIS:

I suggest performing steady-state cardio either on a non-weight training day or directly after a weight training session. On non-weight training days, you can push it up to 60min while on training days keep it to 30min. If you would like to perform 60 minutes of SSC on training days, I would suggest performing it in the morning if the weight training session is scheduled for the afternoon or vice-versa.

HOW MANY SESSIONS CAN I DO PER WEEK?

This type of training doesn’t place too much stress on your body’s systems which allows you to perform it more frequently without interfering with the overall recovery process.

HIGH INTENSITY INTERVAL TRAINING (HIIT)

HIIT is performed by doing intervals of very high intensity work alternated with periods of rest or low intensity. A great example of this are sprints. When performing sprints, you will give an all-out effort for a short period followed by a rest. This action is then repeated for the desired number of rounds.

Example – 100m Sprint , 1min Rest – Repeat 10 times

BEST TIME TO DO THIS:

Like with SSC or any cardio for that matter, it is generally better to perform HIIT on non-weight training days, or after a weight training session. The thing about HIIT is that it’s quite taxing on the body which means you will have to schedule it carefully in between your weight training routines to make sure you get enough recovery time. If scheduled after a weight training session, I suggest no longer than 15minutes. If scheduled on its own on a non-weight training day, you can push yourself into the red for about 20-30mins tops.

HOW MANY SESSIONS CAN I DO PER WEEK?

I’ll suggest no more than 2-3 sessions per week if you are also participating in weight training. Otherwise you can perform HIIT training up to 4 times per week.

AB TRAINING

Walk into any gym and you will with no doubt see dozens of people doing endless sets and reps of various abdominal exercises. If you really pay attention, you will notice that none of them have visible abs. The reason for this is because

NO AMOUNT OF AB TRAINING WILL ALLOW YOU TO SEE YOUR ABS!

Ab training does not burn fat around the midsection. Ab training will only train the abdominal muscles that are underneath the layer of fat that covers them. The only way to see these muscles is to lose the layer of fat that covers them through proper diet, cardio, and weight training.

Ab training will create a muscular abdominal area which will make your midsection much more attractive once the fat that covers them is gone. Treat abs just like every muscle group and train them 1-2 times per week. Doing this along with proper diet and cardio will put you on the road to achieving that elusive six pack.

WEIGHT TRAINING AND FAT LOSS

BEFORE WE JUMP INTO TRAINING ROUTINES AND METHODS I WOULD LIKE TO RUN A FEW FAT LOSS FACTS BY YOU THAT MIGHT HELP YOU UNDERSTAND THINGS A BIT BETTER.

The more lean muscle you have, the quicker your metabolism will be and therefore, the more calories you will burn. To tone or build lean muscle you will have to stimulate or overload them by using weights.

Weight training burns more calories than cardio within 24-48 hours after training due to the amount of stress being placed on the muscles.

Building muscle is a very difficult process. Even more so for women, due to their lower levels of testosterone (main muscle building hormone).

With these principals in mind, you can assume that weight training is going to play a huge role in your fat loss goals. For the women reading this guide, you can relax, as I can guarantee you that you will not end up looking like the Hulk or Arnold Schwarzenegger. Building quality lean muscle takes months if not years, so you can honestly trust me when I say that it will never happen that you look back after a few weeks and think that you have too much muscle.

Now that it has been established that weight training is essential for optimal fat loss, we need to make sure we are doing it right. Somehow it has become “common knowledge” that when trying to burn fat you must lift with high reps and light weight to “feel the burn”. The “burn” in this case would be a build-up of lactic acid and hydrogen ions in the muscles after a couple of reps and not the burn of fat melting away. Any fat loss plan should be periodized. By this, I mean it should always gradually increase in intensity and should also be structured so that you implement the correct training methods at the right time for optimum results during your transformation.

TYPES OF TRAINING METHODS

There are a lot of training methods out there today. With the fitness industry constantly evolving, I’m also sure that there are still many different training methods to come. At Fitness 101, we believe in research and evidence. With that said, I can honestly say that the following methods will definitely aid you in your fat loss quest.

CIRCUIT TRAINING

Circuit training is one of the oldest and most popular training methods today. You will find a circuit training area in most health clubs like Virgin Active or Planet Fitness etc. It requires that you perform exercises back to back with little or no rest until you have completed all the exercises/stations. You can perform this for as many rounds as you prefer or as is indicated in your training plan. I implement this training routine at the end of a 12 week transformation for reasons that will be explained later in the guide.

STRAIGHT-SETS

Straight sets are basically just a normal set with a specific rest time that is usually indicated in the program or by a trainer. Straight sets can be performed as little as once or as many times as indicated.

SUPER-SETS

A super-set is when you perform an exercise stimulating one specific main muscle group, and directly thereafter perform another exercise stimulating the antagonistic (opposing/opposite) muscle group.

E.g.Barbell Bench Press (Chest) + Barbell Bent-Over Row (Back)

OPPOSING MUSCLE GROUPS:

Back + Chest

Bicep + Tricep

Hamstrings + Quads

Abs + Lower Back

Calves + Anterior Tibialis

COMPOUND-SETS

A lot of people mistake super-sets for compound sets. A compound set is when you perform two exercises back to back stimulating the same muscle group.

E.g.Barbell Bench Press + Dumbbell Flye’s

TRI-SETS

A tri-set is when you perform three three exercises which stimulate the same or different muscle groups back to back with little or no rest.

CROSS-TRAINING

ACE Fitness typically defines cross-training as an exercise regimen that uses several modes of training to develop a specific component of fitness. This basically means that you implement different types of exercises and training methods into your plan.

E.g.

800m Run

Barbell Squats

500m Row

Pull Ups

Push Ups

2km Cycle

HIIT (HIGH INTENSITY INTERVAL TRAINING)

The magic of high intensity interval training (or HIIT for short) lies in its ability to keep you burning fat even after you leave the gym. In short, your body isn’t able to bring in enough oxygen during periods of hard work. Therefore, you accumulate a “debt” of oxygen that must be repaid post-workout in order to get back to normal. The result — your metabolism is revved for hours after you leave the gym. Trainers refer to this phenomena as excess post-exercise oxygen consumption or EPOC. The biggest way to use it to your advantage is to make short, intense exercise bouts a regular piece of your workout regimen. Continue reading to see how I implement it into a fat loss transformation plan.

SSC (STEADY-STATE CARDIO)

Just as the name suggests, steady-state cardio is done by performing cardio at a low to moderate intensity for a certain amount of time indicated by a program or trainer.

E.g.20min Treadmill Walking.

All these training methods should be implemented into a fat loss or transformation plan for optimum results. The trick at the end of the day will be to implement them at the correct times, but don’t worry that will all be explained.

REP RANGES

Studies have shown that the most effective way to build or tone muscle would be to overload the muscle with a weight that’s roughly 75% of your One Rep Max (1RM) for an estimate of 8-12, even 15 reps.

In some cases it is possible to build some lean muscle with higher reps, as higher reps improve the rate of protein synthesis which is in short, the rate that your body can repair muscles.

SESSIONS PER WEEK

One thing you should know is that fitness is not black and white, as a matter of fact, it is grey. There are some basic principles but the rest is not set in stone. Meaning it depends on a lot of factors which include the individual himself/herself, genetics, activity level, intensity of training days, nutrition plan etc. So if someone walks up to you and says that you should only train 4 days a week or every day because that’s what he/she’s doing and it’s working, please don’t think that by doing it you are going to experience miracles. It might be working for them but it’s not to say it’s going to work for you, because you are a totally different individual.

I usually suggest 3-4 sessions for my clients that are just starting out, with 2-3 of those sessions focussing mainly on weight training. After a while, depending on their progression, I’ll bump it up to 5-6 sessions a week focusing on 3-4 weight training sessions. If you are not a professional athlete, I don’t suggest training more times than this, as it’s important to give your body adequate rest so that it can repair muscle tissue, glycogen levels etc.

HERE IS AN EXAMPLE OF A WEEK’S FAT LOSS ROUTINE

Monday: Chest, Tricep, Shoulders with 15-20min Cardio

Tuesday: HIIT (Max 30min)

Wednesday: Legs, Abs, Calves with 15-20min Cardio

Thursday: Cross-Training

Friday: Back, Biceps, Traps with 15-20min Cardio

Saturday: Steady-State Cardio (Max 60min)

Sunday: Res

DIFFERENT PHASES OF A WEIGHT TRAINING FAT LOSS PLAN

Like I mentioned before, any fat loss plan needs to be periodized. I’m going to show you how to structure a fat loss training plan effectively for optimum fat loss.

PHASE 1: LEAN MUSCLE BUILDING PHASE (4 WEEKS)

My transformations basically all look the same only with a few small tweaks here and there depending on the individual’s fitness and experience level. I’m a believer of laying a foundation and that’s what you will be doing in the first four weeks of your fat loss journey with lean muscle being the foundation. It’s highly important that we start to build lean muscle as that’s the only way that we are going to speed up metabolism and fat loss. With that said, we know by now to effectively do so, we need to work with 75% of our 1RM for 8-15 reps. So, for the first 2 weeks we will be doing 12-15 reps with 3 sets of an exercise and for the last 2 weeks we will perform 10-12 reps with 4 sets per exercise.

If you are a beginner I suggest starting with machines, as it removes most of the unfamiliar stabilization that’s needed with free weights. After doing 2 weeks of machines, I’m sure that you will be able to handle free weights more confidently, without setting yourself up for injury.

You will notice that I don’t emphasize cardio in the first 4 weeks as I believe that you need to save some energy to help build lean muscle more effectively. There will be a time in the training plan for cardio but the first 4 weeks we mainly focus on weight training – I’m going to need you to trust me!

EXAMPLE OF THE FIRST 2 WEEKS:

MONDAY

CHEST, TRICEP, SHOULDERS - 10MIN CARDIO

Exercise

Push Ups

Machine Chest Press

Peck Deck Flye Machine

Machine Shoulder Press

Tricep Pushdowns

Rope Pushdowns

TUESDAY

LEGS, CALVES, ABS - 10MIN CARDIO

Exercise

Leg Press

Leg Extensions

Abduction Machine

Lunges

Hamstring Curls

Standing Calves Raise

WEDNESDAY

STEADY-STATE CARDIO FOR APPROX. 30MIN + ABS

Exercise

Steady-state cardio for approx. 30min + abs

THURSDAY

BACK, BICEPS - 10MIN CARDIO

Exercise

Lat Pulldowns

Close-Grip Pulldowns

Seated Machine Rows

Lower Back Extensions

Cable Pulley Curls

Cable Rope Curls

FRIDAY

STEADY-STATE CARDIO FOR APPROX. 30MIN + ABS

Exercise

Steady-state cardio for approx. 30min + abs

SATURDAY

REST

Exercise

REST

SUNDAY

REST

Exercise

REST

EXAMPLE OF WEEKS 3-4:

MONDAY

BACK, TRICEPS - 15MIN CARDIO

Exercise

Lying T-Bar Row

Bent-Over Dumbbell Row

Dumbbell Incline Row

Lower Back Extensions

Barbell Curls

Dumbbell Curls

TUESDAY

LEGS, CALVES - 15MIN CARDIO

Exercise

Hack Squats

Leg Press

Lunges

Step Ups on Bench

Hamstring Curls

Seated Calves

WEDNESDAY

STEADY-STATE CARDIO FOR APPROX 40MIN + ABS

Exercise

Steady-state cardio for approx. 40min + abs

THURSDAY

CHEST, TRICEPS, SHOULDERS - 15MIN CARDIO

Exercise

Barbell Incline Bench Press

Cable Crossovers

Dumbbell Shoulder Press

Dumbbell Overhead Tricep Extensions

Dumbbell Kickbacks

FRIDAY

STEADY-STATE CARDIO FOR APPROX. 40MIN + ABS

Exercise

Steady-state cardio for approx. 40min + abs

SATURDAY

REST

Exercise

REST

SUNDAY

REST

Exercise

REST

PHASE 2: TRANSITION PHASE (4 WEEKS)

During the first 4 weeks we focused on training methods like straight sets and steady-state cardio. During the transition phase we are going to focus more on cardiovascular work while implementing super-sets, tri-sets, compound sets and HIIT. This will allow your body to build a little bit of extra lean muscle while kick starting your fat burning before the last 4 weeks which will be the “Fat Burning Phase”.

We are going perform 4 days of weight training while doing 1-2 days of HIIT. Our rep ranges can be anything between 8-10 for about 4 sets each.

EXAMPLE OF WEEKS 5-6:

MONDAY

BACK + CHEST WITH 20-25MIN CARDIO

Exercise

Sets

Reps

Dumbbell Bench Press + Barbell Bent-Over Row

4

8-10

Incline Dumbbell Press + Seated Cable Row

4

8-10

Incline Dumbbell Flye + Barbell Pull-Over

4

8-10

Barbell Deadlift + Dips

4

8-10

TUESDAY

HIIT + ABS

Exercise

400m Run

500m Row

1.5km Cycle

Rest 3min after completion of these 3 exercises before continuing another round.

You can perform anything between 3-4 rounds.

200m Run @ 75% with 90sec rest

Repeat approx. 5-10 times

WEDNESDAY

SHOULDERS + LEGS WITH 20-25MIN CARDIO

Exercise

Sets

Reps

Dumbbell Shoulder Press + Barbell Squats

4

8-10

Dumbbell Lateral Raise + Straight Leg Deadlifts

4

8-10

Barbell Upright Row + Dumbbell Lunges

4

8-10

Rear Delt Dumbbell Flye + Single Leg Presses

4

8-10

THURSDAY

STEADY=STATE CARDIO APPROX. 45MIN + ABS

Exercise

Steady-state cardio for approx. 45min + abs

FRIDAY

BICEP, TRICEPS WITH 20-25MIN CARDIO

Exercise

Sets

Reps

Incline Dumbbell Curls + Bench Dips

4

8-10

EZ Curls + Reverse Pressdowns

4

8-10

Concentration Curls + Overhead Rope Extensions

SATURDAY

HIIT + ABS

Exercise

400m Run

500m Row

1.5km Cycle

Rest 3min after completion of these 3 exercises before continuing another round.

You can perform anything between 3-4 rounds.

200m Run @ 75% with 90sec rest

Repeat approx. 5-10 times

SUNDAY

REST

Exercise

REST

EXAMPLE OF WEEKS 7-8:

MONDAY

CHEST + BACK WITH 20-25MIN CARDIO

Exercise

Sets

Reps

Dumbbell Bench Press + Dumbbell Flye

4

8-10

Lat Pulldowns + Dumbbell Rows

4

8-10

Incline Dumbbell Press + Incline Dumbbell Flye

4

8-10

Close-Grip Pulldowns + Barbell Bent-Over Row

4

8-10

Barbell Deadlift + Chest Dips + One-Arm Seated Machine Row

4

8-10

TUESDAY

CROSS-TRAINING +ABS

Exercise

Push Ups x20

400m Run

Pull Ups x 20

500m Row

Squats x20

1.5km Cycle

Kettlebell Swings x20

WEDNESDAY

SHOULDERS + LEGS WITH 20-25MIN CARDIO

Exercise

Sets

Reps

Barbell Squats + Leg Extensions

4

8-10

Arnold Presses + Dumbbell Lateral Raise

4

8-10

Hamstring Curls + Straight Leg Deadlifts

4

8-10

Barbell Upright Row + Rear Delt Dumbbell Flye

4

8-10

Lunges + Step Ups + Barbell Hang Clean and Press

4

8-10

THURSDAY

STEADY=STATE CARDIO APPROX. 45MIN + ABS

Exercise

Steady-state cardio for approx. 45min + abs

FRIDAY

BICEP + TRICEP

Exercise

Sets

Reps

Incline Dumbbell Curls + Barbell Curls

4

8-10

Bench Dips + Pushdowns

4

8-10

Hammer Curls + Rope Curls

4

8-10

Skull Crushers + Close-Grip Push Ups

4

8-10

Barbell 21’s + Overhead Rope Extensions + Kickbacks

4

8-10

SATURDAY

CROSS-TRAINING +ABS

Exercise

Push Ups x20

400m Run

Pull Ups x 20

500m Row

Squats x20

1.5km Cycle

Kettlebell Swings x20

SUNDAY

REST

Exercise

REST

PHASE 3: FAT BURNING PHASE (4 WEEKS)

Now that we have built adequate lean muscle we can start implementing more cardio, to help assist in burning some extra calories which will lead to fat loss. The main goal of these 4 weeks is to keep your Heart Rate (HR) elevated throughout the workout and to keep our rest periods very limited.

These last few weeks are when most people start dropping out! Why? Because it’s when they start reaching a plateau because they haven’t laid a solid foundation like you will have done. So, with that said, aim to stay focused and motivated for the last 4 weeks and I can guarantee some miracles.

The first 2 weeks during the transition phase we are going to mainly focus on tri-sets. We are also going back to 15 reps to make sure our intensity is high enough during the workout.

WEDNESDAY

CROSS-TRAINING WITH ABS

SUNDAY

REST

EXAMPLE OF WEEKS 11-12:

This is where I start implementing circuit training with an additional 30min cardio afterwards.

MONDAY

CHEST WITH 30MIN CARDIO

Exercise

Push Ups

Dumbbell Presses

Incline Flye

Decline Barbell Press

Chest Dips

Rest between 2-3min before repeating again.

TUESDAY

BACK WITH 30MIN CARDIO

Exercise

Lat Pulldown

Barbell Row

Barbell Deadlift

Lying T-Bar Row

Seated Cable Row

Rest between 2-3min before repeating again.

WEDNESDAY

LEGS WITH 30MIN CARDIO

Exercise

Barbell Front Squats

Leg Press

Lunges

Step Ups

Hamstring Curls

Standing Calves Raise

Rest between 2-3min before repeating again.

THURSDAY

SHOULDERS WITH 30MIN CARDIO

Exercise

Dumbbell Shoulder Press

Dumbbell Lateral Raise

Upright Row

Rear Delt Dumbbell Flye

Dumbbell Front Raise

Rest between 2-3min before repeating again.

FRIDAY

ARMS WITH 30MIN CARDIO

Exercise

Barbell Curls + Press Downs

Cable Curls + Rope Pushdowns

Hammer Curls + Machine Dips

Dumbbell Curls + Close-Grip Push Ups

Rest between 2-3min before repeating again.

SATURDAY

STEADY-STATE CARDIO MAX 60MIN

Exercise

Steady-state cardio MAX 60min

SUNDAY

REST

Exercise

REST

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

SHOULD I DO CARDIO ON AN EMPTY STOMACH?

A lot of people think doing cardio on an empty stomach first thing in the morning leads to greater fat loss because of the greater percentage of calories that would be derived from fat during cardio and that a minimum amount of glycogen would be used for energy. At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter if energy comes from glycogen or from fat, the fat loss will be the same no matter the substrate.

Early morning cardio on an empty stomach (Fasted Cardio) may result in higher fat utilization, but it also results in higher amino acid utilization which means more muscle tissue breakdown. As if that wasn’t enough, research has also proven that fasted cardio leads to far less total calories being expended per session. This means that there is simply less fat loss from fasted cardio when compared to cardio performed in a fed state. So make sure you get some food in your system before you head out to perform your cardio.

SHOULD I DO CARDIO BEFORE OR AFTER WEIGHT TRAINING?

Like I mentioned before, fitness is a grey area. There is no right or wrong answer regarding whether you do cardio before or after your weight training sessions, as it will all depend on the individual’s goal. I’ve seen a lot of clients lose the same amount of weight by doing cardio before their weight training sessions, and I believe it’s all about the amount of calories burned within 24 hours that will determine your fat loss.

But, keep in mind to lose fat more effectively you will need to build some lean muscle. To build lean muscle you will have to overload your muscles. With that said, you should know that you can’t overload them that effectively if you have already done 30minutes of cardiovascular work. I believe to really stress and overload the muscles effectively you need to be able to perform the exercise at your full potential, and there’s no way that you will be able to do that 30-40min into your workout. With that said, I’ll suggest performing your cardio sessions directly after your training sessions.

HOW MANY WEEKS SHOULD I STICK TO MY PROGRAM BEFORE CHANGING IT

This is also not a one sentence answer. Not everybody is the same, meaning some might adapt to a training program quicker than others. Recent studies have shown that you can stay on the same program for approx. 5-6 weeks and still make progress without reaching a plateau.

In my opinion I’ll suggest that you stick to your program for approx. 3-4 weeks. If you are like me that gets bored very quickly with a program then I’ll suggest sticking to a similar program like the transformation mentioned above for 2-3 weeks before changing it up.

CAN I SPOT REDUCE FAT WITH EXERCISE

No. To reduce areas with excess fat you must burn more calories than you are ingesting. Keep in mind that training a specific muscle group e.g. your abs will only be stimulating the abdominal muscles, and the fat layer around it will not be affected. The only way the fat layer will slowly start to disappear is when your body starts burning fat through its metabolic processes.

I’M VERY OBESE SHOULD I PERFORM HIIT

It’s really not something I suggest for obese people as it’s very strenuous even for average weight beginners. Keep in mind moving is moving so maybe focus on becoming more active first by cycling, walking or getting on the elliptical. Lay your foundation and work from there.

WHAT TYPE OF TRAINING IS BEST WHEN IT COMES TO WEIGHTS AND CARDIO

All the types of training methods like SSC or HIIT should be implemented in a fat loss plan or transformation. There is no superior form of weight training or cardio as they all play their roles in helping you lose weight. It’s like a sports team, you won’t get far if you play just one or two good players you will need the whole squad to win the league! In this case fat loss is your league!